Roofing materials, such as roofing shingles, are installed on the roofs of buildings to provide protection from the elements and to give the roof an aesthetically pleasing look. Two of the most common shingle styles offered in residential roofing are single layer, three-tab shingles and multilayer architectural or laminate shingles. Single layer, three-tab shingles generally include a single substrate constructed to be flat without any dimensional thickness and include three individual equal width tabs cut into the portion of the shingle that is exposed when installed on a roof.
Architectural or laminate shingles generally include two substrates laminated together with tabs of varying widths formed in the exposed area, and typically slightly different shades of color, to give a more dimensional appearance that is often considered more aesthetically pleasing than conventional three-tab shingles.